


A World Apart

by ChickPea92



Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age: Origins
Genre: AU, Eluvians, F/M, The Fade, crossed dimensions
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-04-22
Updated: 2015-04-22
Packaged: 2018-03-25 07:29:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,858
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3801997
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ChickPea92/pseuds/ChickPea92
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Warden-Commander Mahariel and Warden-Commander Cousland stumble across each other’s paths.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Theron felt a chill run down his spine. Leliana must have noticed him tense as she squeezed her hand in his.

“We don’t have to do this, you know. I’m not sure why you even want to. You saw Tamlen at the camp when we were attacked. Chances are that any trace left of him will be gone.”

Theron clenched his eyes tightly at an attempt to suppress the images that still haunted him.

_“Please..stop me..” Tamlen pleaded. His dark, sunken eyes bored into him. Theron knew this could only possibly end one way. He gripped his bow tightly and raised an arrow to it. Pulled it back. And released._

“I know. I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have dragged you here. You should go back to camp.” Theron said sombrely. Leliana moved to stand in front of him.

“You told me we would travel together after the Blight and that’s what we’re doing. I’m not leaving your side for a second, my love. Especially not now.” She gave him a small smile and Theron wondered how he ever deserved her love; her devotion. He leant in and gave her a soft peck on the lips.

“I love you. Creators, I love you so much.”

“And I love you. Now, shall we?” Leliana smiled and gestured towards the cave in front of them. Theron clasped her hand in his again as they made their way into the dark, dank cave that had put him on this path all those years ago.

The two of them retraced the steps that he and Tamlen had made that fateful day, killing the odd cave spider every now and then. Theron wasn’t sure why he’d even wanted to come back when nothing good could come of it. Some miniscule part of him had hoped to find Tamlen here, though he knew it was impossible. Even if the elf he’d killed at camp hadn’t actually been Tamlen it’d been 3 years since then and he’d surely be dead or long gone by now. Maybe he just needed some closure.

They carried on through the caves, killing and looting as they went. Theron heard a crunch when Leliana entered the next area, like she’d stepped on glass. They were here.

“Maker, what happened here?” Leliana asked as she looked around the room scattered with broken glass.

“They’re pieces of the mirror,” he said slowly, “Duncan smashed it when we came back down here.” He looked around the room, a pained expression on his face. Maybe they shouldn’t have come here, something didn’t feel right.

“I’ll give you a moment. I’m going to scout ahead to the other areas. Just shout if you need me, ok?”

“Of course” He replied, giving her a sad smile. He watched Leliana leave and then brought his gaze back down to the mess that surrounded him. Shards of the mirror were strewn everywhere across the floor, but then he noticed something on the far side of the room. There was a larger piece, still intact. Dread set in his stomach when he realised it still had a faint glow to it. His feet unwillingly moved himself towards the illuminating artefact, his mind screaming at him to get out of this damned cave. This must have been what Tamlen felt, he thought. Theron did everything in his power to force his body to stop moving, to just turn around and leave. He even tried calling out to Leliana but when his mouth opened nothing came out.

As his hand started to move through the mirror he knew there was nothing he could do to stop it. _I’m so sorry, Leliana._

* * *

 

Mhyrial coughed through the dust. She guessed that this estate must have been abandoned for years and the thought of what treasures possibly lay ahead thrilled her to no end.

“Ow!” She looked across at Alistair who had, once again, got his foot stuck in another trap. Mhyrial rolled her eyes.

“See, this is why I insist on going first. You need to pay more attention to your surroundings, my dear.”

“Yes, yes, alright. Just help me get my foot out, will you.” She carefully made her way over to him, being sure to avoid any further traps, and helped him to manoeuvre his foot out of the complex mechanism.

“Hmm” Mhyrial mused.

“What? Is it my foot? Please don’t tell me you’re going to have to chop it off. I’m not sure how easily I’ll be able to fight darkspawn with only one foot.”

“You’ll be no worse than you are already.” She smirked up at his feigned look of annoyance, “Don’t worry, Alistair, you’re fine. But this trap is more advanced than the ones you normally get yourself stuck in. Whoever made this knew what they were doing and obviously wanted to make sure no one got past.”

Alistair noticed the glint in her eyes.

“Now, this is where a normal person would say that clearly this place is far too dangerous to explore, and then turn around and head straight back outside.”

“Ah, now there’s your problem, you didn’t fall in love with a normal person did you?” Alistair chuckled.

“No, I fell in love with the woman who needlessly extended the Blight by insisting on opening every locked chest or cabinet she came across.” Alistair rubbed at his sore ankle and Mhyrial just stood there grinning at him. “In all seriousness, my dear, we’re already late to get back to camp. We’re supposed to be present for all Grey Warden joining rituals and so far we’ve managed three.”

“Stop worrying. I’m the Warden-Commander here and we might find something useful, you never know.”

Alistair sighed knowing there was no point arguing with her. She just couldn’t resist a good looting session.

Mhyrial quickly went about disarming any remaining traps on the lower floor and started making her way to the grand staircase in the centre of the hall.

“You explore down here and I’ll have a look around upstairs. I’ll be quick, I promise.” She gave Alistair an apologetic smile before turning to head upstairs. He never was one for exploring unknown caves or tombs but she knew he did it for her and she loved him all the more for it.

The upper floor appeared to be clear of traps but was cluttered with broken boxes and overgrown, dying plant life instead. Mhyrial pushed her way into the first room she came across, digging her way through anything and everything, desperate to find something of interest. Rolls of parchment, _useless_ , some important looking documents, _sell them later_ , some silver bowls, _as if I need more of them_. She gave out a huff and stumbled down the hall into the next room.

She went through the motions of lock picking and searching in each room, hearing the occasional crash from Alistair’s direction downstairs, finding little of interest. She was about to give up and accept that maybe this mansion had just been occupied by a someone attempting to defend themselves from the Blight when she heard, or rather felt, something from down the hall. She couldn’t explain what it was but she just felt so drawn to it, like nothing else in the world mattered.

Mhyrial couldn’t help herself. She let it draw her in, her curiosity getting the better of her. It led her to a small room at the end of the corridor with nothing in it except a tall object covered in a dusty old sheet. The feeling inside her had become unbelievably powerful. She knew that even if she wanted to stop and leave she couldn’t. She slowly pulled the sheet away to reveal a huge glowing mirror and suddenly she wasn’t curious anymore, she was afraid. She wanted Alistair here, for him to stop whatever was happening to her. Was this the end? Was this how the great Hero of Ferelden was going to go down, giving into quiet whispers in her head? She prayed to the Maker, promised never to go exploring alone, never to put off her duties again, but it was no use. She knew it was too late the second she stepped into the mirror.


	2. Chapter 2

Theron felt the glass crack beneath his fist.

“No!”

He felt the blood trickle down his arm and drip from his elbow to the moss covered stone beneath his feet.

“Don’t do this to me!”

He kept banging his bloodied fist on the Eluvian, praying to every God in existence to let him go back. _Please let me go back._

He only stopped when his hand was shaking too much to continue. He leant his forehead on the mirror in front of him and let out a frustrated cry. Why did he do it? Why did he have to come back? He just couldn’t have left it alone. Tears started to slowly run down his cheeks and he crumbled to the ground on his knees. It felt like all his energy had finally been sucked out of him and he shifted to sit with his back against the mirror in an attempt to recuperate.

He stared out at the scene before him. Endless Eluvians encompassed him in a hazy mist and the fractured stone floor was almost completely shrouded in moss and leaves. Every now and then there was a stone sculpture which also bore Eluvians on each of its sides. Theron had no idea where he was and was starting to feel light headed from the blood lost due to the cuts on his hand. He felt utterly defeated and welcomed the exhaustion that had quickly crept up on him as he closed his eyes, not caring whether he opened them again or not.

* * *

 

For only the second time in her life, Mhyrial Cousland was terrified.

The first had been at her home in Highever when she’d been awoken in the middle of the night to the slaughter of her family. She remembered the fear she’d felt as Duncan dragged her away from her parents, knowing she would have to face whatever her future was without them.

She thought of them now and wondered what they would have made of her life. Would they be proud? Father undoubtedly would be. His daughter was Warden-Commander Cousland of Ferelden. He would inform everyone and anyone who would listen. She was sure Mother would be proud too, but she would have rested easier if she had just settled down with some noble man and had a family. She would have liked Alistair though, Mhyrial thought.

She was abruptly torn away from her thoughts when a faint cry came from the distance. Was someone else here? She finally decided to take in her surroundings. There were other mirrors, hundreds of them disappearing off into the distance, just like the one she’d stumbled through. She started to wander off in the direction she thought she heard the noise come from, examining every mirror on her way to see if they had that same faint glow hers had had.

She wanted Alistair here. No, she needed him here. He gave her the strength she needed in such frightening times. He’d made facing the Archdemon seem like nothing. She realised that this was the first time they’d been apart since they’d first met at Ostagar and she couldn’t stop the tears that begun to well in her eyes.

She walked for what felt like hours and assumed that she’d either gone the wrong way in the first place or whoever’s voice that was had moved on. Her feet were aching and she wanted nothing more than to sit down and rest, but she wouldn’t allow it. She had to find a way out. Find a way back to Alistair. She peered down every row of mirrors she passed until she saw a figure leaning against one. She just stopped and stared, wondering if her exhausted eyes were playing tricks on her. She turned towards the mysterious body and started walking. As she got closer she realised that it wasn’t her mind fooling her and there was in fact an elf slumped in front of a shattered mirror with blood pooled around one of his arms.

“Hello?” He didn’t say anything or appear to move so she crouched down beside him and feared he was dead. She reached out and tentatively touched his arm.

He jolted awake and she fell onto her backside in a thud. The elf scrambled onto his feet and abruptly pulled out his bow to aim an arrow directly at her head.

“Who are you?” He demanded. Mhyrial finally got a good look at him and saw that he was a Dalish elf, noting the vallaslin that decorated his face. She held up her hand in defence as she rubbed her sore backside.

“My name’s Mhyrial Cousland and I would appreciate it if you didn’t point that thing in my face” He pondered this for a moment before lowering his bow. She watched him look over her with a confused expression.

“You’re a Grey Warden?”

“Yes, I’m Warden-Commander of Ferelden. I assume you recognised the armour.” He narrowed his eyes and swiftly brought his bow back up again. “Hey, hey! What are you doing?!”

“You’re lying.”

“I assure you I’m not, just let me expl – “

“Quiet! Enough of your lies! You cannot possibly be Ferelden’s Warden-Commander as I am – was – to be given that position in a few days’ time.”

Now it was Mhyrial’s turn to be confused. She hadn’t heard of this. But it wasn’t entirely impossible since she’d be shirking a lot of her duties lately in favour of exploring. But that kind of order would have had to have come from someone high up.

“Did Queen Anora appoint you? Is she really going behind my back after everything I did for her?”

“What? I don’t know, it was either her or King Alistair. Either way, there is no current Warden-Commander in Ferelden. So once again, I ask you who you are.”

Mhyrial’s eyes widened in disbelief. _King Alistair?_ Did he really just say that? She almost laughed at the thought. She didn’t know what to say to that so she was just left with her mouth open, completely lost for words.

“Hero of – I’m the Hero of Ferelden. I slayed the Archdemon during the Fifth Blight.” She watched the elf begin to lower his bow. She should have started with that, everyone knew that title. He looked in utter shock.

“This..this cannot be possible.”

“Yes, yes, I know,” She started using her ‘over-excited fan’ voice, “I can’t believe it’s really you! You killed the Archdemon in Ferelden! Will you sign this for me?” His expression didn’t change and Mhyrial started to feel slightly uneasy.

“But.. _I’m_ the Hero of Ferelden. _I_ slayed the Archdemon. How can this be?” She could scarcely believe what she was hearing. Another Hero of Ferelden and another Archdemon? How was this possible?

“Let me ask you something, how did you get here?” She already had a feeling she knew the answer.

“I came through an Eluvian in an old Elven temple.”

“An Eluvian?”

“Yes, it’s an old magical mirror. Like the ones all around us”

“Ah, yes, that’s what happened to me as well then.” She pondered on this for a moment. “Perhaps stepping into those _Eluvians_ has somehow caused our worlds to merge in this place, wherever we are.” The elf dropped his bow and arrow to the ground.

“How can you be so casual about this?! None of this makes any sense! I don’t want to be here, I just want to leave and get back to Leliana.” He stormed off in the opposite direction to where she was still sprawled out on the stone floor. It took a moment for what he’d just said to register with her.

“Wait! Leliana? You know her in your world too?” She jogged to catch up with him.

“Yes.”

“Well yes, I suppose you do if you know Alistair as well. Did you truly make him king?”

“Why wouldn’t I?” She was struggling to keep up with his pace.

“Probably because he’d be useless at it and he didn’t want to be king in the first place.” She couldn’t imagine Alistair as king. He’d probably be so unhappy living a life he never wanted.

“Well he is king and he makes a good team with Anora.”

“So he rules Ferelden with her? As in a nice friendly partnership or..?” She knew they had to be married but she could hope.

“I asked them to marry and they did.” She suddenly felt the need to slap Alistair across the face for cheating on her in another dimension, as stupid as that was. She heard a frustrated sigh next to her.

“This is useless. We’re never going to find a way out of here, there could be thousands of these things and none of them working.”

“Well, why don’t we take this time to get to know each other and our worlds, that could be fun right? I don’t even know your name.” Mhyrial wasn’t sure how she was managing to stay so positive but she was just relieved not to be alone in this strange place. He sighed again.

“My name’s Theron Mahariel.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you Theron. My name’s Mhyrial, in case you’ve forgotten in all the confusion.” She tried to give him a warm smile to put him at ease and she received a small but sad smile in return.

* * *

 

Theron realised he’d been a bit unfair towards her. She was stuck in this place just as much as he was and there was no point in getting angry with her.

“I’m sorry I’ve been so short with you. I just want to get back to Leliana, she’s no doubt worried about me.”

“Ah, so you and Leliana are together? Hm, yes, I can see you two being quite the adorable couple. Not as adorable as Alistair and I, mind you.” She chuckled at her own little joke and he decided to indulge her in her curiosity of their worlds.

“Hmph, Alistair and I aren’t really on the best of terms.” Mhyrial’s eyebrows shot up in surprise.

“Really? Why not? Because you made him king? Or did you just not laugh at his jokes? I have to admit even I don’t find all his jokes funny.”

“Er, no, it wasn’t that. He wanted me to kill Loghain and I refused.” He glanced sideways to gauge her reaction; she didn’t look impressed to say the least. “Listen, just let me explain.”

And explain he did. He told her how he believed the Grey Wardens needed all the help they could get, no matter whose help it was. In return she told him of how Howe had ordered the slaughter of her family. He couldn’t help but feel devastated for her, he may have been forced from his clan but at least he knew they were alive and well.

They enjoyed trading similar stories of their fellow companions as they continued their way through the never ending rows of Eluvians. They joked about Alistair and Morrigan’s bittersweet friendship and discovered they both shared surprise in finding a friend in Sten. He felt a twinge of regret as she told him of Wynne and was grateful that she didn’t dwell on the harsh decision he’d made to kill the mages at the circle. Neither of them brought up the fact that both of them must have accepted the ritual Morrigan offered to them. He had performed it himself and could only assume that Mhyrial had somehow persuaded Alistair to partake in it.

Eventually they fell into a comfortable silence as they strolled through the mysterious land they’d found themselves trapped in. He had no idea how they were going to get out or if there was even a way to leave at all. He’d tried to read as much as he could about the Eluvians since his encounter with Tamlen but felt like he’d learned little from it. He almost felt embarrassed that a Dalish elf didn’t know how to get out of a place full of Elven artefacts. His thoughts drifted back to Leliana and hoped that she hadn’t gone completely out of her mind with worry for him. She must have worked out by now that he’d travelled through the mirror. Dread filled his gut when he wondered if she’d somehow be dragged into it as well and his mind started to run with all the possible, horrific, outcomes. A hand grasped his forearm and was relieved to be swiftly pulled from his disturbing thoughts.

They both stopped in their tracks and stared ahead of them at the glowing Eluvian imbedded into one of the many stone features that littered this place.

“Are you seeing what I’m seeing?” Mhyrial asked quietly.

“I hope so.” Theron started moving closer to the illuminating artefact in front of them.

“Wait! Where are you going?”

“Where do you think I’m going? I’m going back into that thing so I can get back to where I came from, so _we_ can get back to where _we_ belong.” He was marching faster towards it now and heard footsteps running to catch up with him until they were both stood before the object that could return everything to how it should be.

“But what if it doesn’t lead us back to where we came from?” Her eyes were wide with fear.

“It’s a risk we’re going to have to take. We don’t know how long it’s going to stay open and if we leave it too long we could be trapped here until Creator knows when.” He held out his hand for her, hoping to offer a bit of reassurance. “Together?”

She looked down at his hand and hesitated before grasping it tightly in her own.

“Together.” She pulled him back as he started to head into the mirror. “Wait, sorry, before we do this. I just want to say that it was..nice..you know, getting to meet you and everything. It’s comforting to know that someone else has had to go through the same things I have.”

“I know what you mean. It’s felt pretty lonely, despite the constant companions. No one ever really understood what we went through, huh?” He finally gave her a genuine smile.

“Yeah...” Her gaze moved to the ground.

“We should probably go before it’s too late.” His fellow Warden looked back up at him and nodded in response.

Theron jumped in first and pulled Mhyrial in behind him.

Neither of them knew what awaited them beyond the glistening mirror but it wouldn’t be long before they found out.

* * *

 

Evelyn stared down the aisle of Eluvians.

“Something wrong Inquisitor?” She whipped her head back round to look at Morrigan.

“No, sorry, what were you saying?” She could have sworn she’d just seen two figures off in the distance jumping into one of the mirrors. She dismissed the preposterous notion as quickly as she’d thought of it; it must have been her mind playing tricks on her.


End file.
